A previously inadequate school is celebrating after Ofsted praised its rapid improvement to ‘good’.

Burscough Priory Academy – then known as Burscough Priory Science College – had been rated Inadequate by Ofsted when it was last inspected in 2017.

But a year later Endeavour Learning Trust took the school on and began an improvement plan.

And now, six years on, following its first Ofsted inspection since Endeavour started its sponsorship of the school, it has been rated ‘good’ in all areas – with specific praise for the “many improvements” put in place and for how the school has become a “calm and welcoming community”.

The Ofsted report says “leaders and teachers have high expectations” of students and that they benefit from the “positive climate for learning” across a broad range of subjects and an “ambitious” curriculum, achieving well and prepared for the next stage of their education.

It’s a far cry from the report of 2017, when Ofsted gave it the lowest possible rating and criticised it for poor strategic leadership, a lack of support for disadvantaged pupils, the weak progress made by students, bad behaviour by students, and teachers’ low expectations of what students could achieve.

Headteacher Lucy MacLaren said: “I am incredibly proud that the hard work of our staff to provide our students high-quality education and extensive opportunities to flourish has been rewarded by this brilliant report.

“Over the past four years, we have been dedicated to instilling a love of learning in our students through broad and rich educational opportunities. Our vision is to be ‘a great school in the heart of the community,’ and this inspection report goes a long way to affirm the path to this goal. 

“Moving forward, we will be continuing to build upon these strong foundations outlined in the report to ensure we are going above and beyond to prepare our students for future success.”

Chief Executive of the trust, Lesley Gwinnett said: “I am so pleased to see Ofsted recognise what has been a real transformation of the school.

“Everyone involved – staff, students, parents and governors – have worked so hard to achieve this.

“It’s been a real team effort. I look forward to seeing the school go from strength to strength.”